Unknown Type Rescue: Storm Drain
by DaisyK2tog
Summary: The station gets called out to Mike's neighborhood for a quacking good rescue. Inspired by a recent rescue by Engine 13 of the Renton Fire Department (WA). The locations in this story are real and in Carson, CA. The characters are not. Station 51 characters belong to Mark VII and Universal Studios, every one else belongs to me.
**Station 51…unknown type rescue…intersection of E 222** **nd** **St and Lucerne Ave…intersection of East Two Two Two Street and Lucerne Avenue…cross street E 223** **rd** **St…time out 10:32**

As everyone scrambled for their respective seats on their respective apparatus Capt. Stanley skidded into the com base and responded to the call. "Station 51 10-4, KMG 365," he said into the mic while writing down the address on two slips of paper. Handing one call slip to Roy, he hit the bay door up button on his way around the squad and jogged to his place on the engine.

Johnny took a look at the call slip as Roy pulled out. "Hey, that's only a few blocks from here. Make a right. It'll be the first right after the canal."

Roy made the turn, saying, "That's past the tracks?"

"Yeah." Johnny chuckled. "I think that's Mike's neighborhood. Maybe we shoulda let him lead."

Roy raised his eyebrows. "That would explain how he's always so early to shift."

By this time both trucks had arrived at the turn onto Lucerne Ave and slowed to approach E 222nd. As they pulled to a stop Johnny spotted two men and an agitated looking brown duck at the top of the T that was the intersection in question. All of them were looking down at a storm drain, with one of the men actually on his knees in the gutter peering inside. The other man looked up as the trucks arrived and waved them over.

Johnny and Roy looked at each other, Johnny with his scrunched up "WTF" face on. As they got out of the squad the engine crew walked up to them, Cap asking "I wonder what's with the duck?"

Johnny jogged up to the scene. He completely expected the duck to fly away, or at least back off, but no dice. It stayed right where it was, only glancing up in his direction briefly and quacking at him. "Hi," Johnny announced himself. "We're with the fire department. We got a call for a rescue?"

The man on the ground looked up. "Yeah, that was me. I didn't know what else to do. We can't get to them ourselves and it is kind of an emergency."

Cap looked down at the opening on the side of the curb. "Do we have a kid down there?"

"Five of 'em, actually. Her's," the man on the ground indicated the duck. "She nests every year in my back yard. About a week after they hatch she walks them across the lot and down to the canal." He pointed across the large car sales lot that the sidewalk they were on bordered.

The other man finally spoke up. "I was doing my morning jog down here when I saw her jump up on the curb. The ducklings tried, but they slid down the drain. It's kind of slick due to the rain we had overnight. I ran to get Jim. He figured we aughtta call you guys."

Cap and Johnny got down on their knees and examined the drain. Cap called out, "Someone get us some flashlights." Mike took off toward the engine to do just that.

Returning and handing over a flashlight each to Cap and Johnny, Mike looked at the man on the ground. "Jim? I didn't know you had ducks nesting."

"Oh. Hi, Mike. Yeah, we like to keep it quiet. Don't want to alert the neighborhood kids. Ya know?"

At this exchange, Chet couldn't help but pipe up. "You guys know each other?"

Mike looked like he let a secret slip. "Uh, yeah. Jim's my backyard neighbor. I live over on Renton. Mike nodded to the next street over.

"Oh, yeah? If you live so," but he didn't get a chance to finish the thought as the Cap scolded him.

"Kelly! Put a sock in it and get a crow bar. We need to get this manhole cover off."

"Got it, Cap."

Chet came back and pried up the cover, allowing access to the catch basin. The hole wasn't very wide so, of course, Johnny was elected for retrieval. He laid down and stuck his arm and head down into the hole. Meanwhile, Mamma Duck was anxiously pacing up and down while quacking to herself.

"Cap," Johnny said from inside the hole. "I can't quite reach 'em. My arm's not long enough." He pulled his head up and gave his captain a good long look. "How long's your arm?"

Cap realized that his extra 3 inches over Johnny probably gave him a longer wingspan, so to speak. He took off his helmet and handed it over to Mike. Getting down on his knees, he waved Johnny aside. "OK. Get outta there. Let me give it a try." He stretched out his 6'4" frame on the sidewalk and stuck his right arm down, pushing his face directly over the hole so he could see what he was doing.

"Yep. I can touch the water." A few moments of silence and, "OK. Got one, someone pull me up." Roy and Marco each grabbed a shoulder and carefully pulled their captain to his knees. Lightly gripped in his right hand was a tiny, yellow duckling. He put it down in the direction of Mamma and went back in.

This was repeated four more times, until all the little ducklings were back on dry land with their mother. When the last of them were out, firefighters and civilians all sent up a cheer and a round of applause. Mamma Duck quacked a few times in their general direction and slipped under the fence surrounding the car lot, babies in tow. The now reunited family waddled off in the direction of the canal.

After the manhole cover was replaced, handshakes were exchanged between the two men and the crew, and the men of Station 51 were heading back to their trucks to head back to the station, Chet was heard to say, "I don't care what else happens today. Nothing beats rescuing baby ducks."


End file.
